Luke 12:48

Etheridge Translation

But he who knew not, and did that which was worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For every one to whom much is given, much will be required from him; and to whom much is committed, the more will they require at his hand.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
But the one who did not know and did what deserved

King James Version (1611)
But hee that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall bee beaten with few stripes. For vnto whomsoeuer much is giuen, of him shal bee much required: and to whom men haue committed much, of him they will aske the more.

King James Version
But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.

English Standard Version
But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.

New American Standard Bible
but the one who did not know it, and committed acts deserving of a beating, will receive only a few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.

New Century Version
But the servant who does not know what his master wants and does things that should be punished will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded. And from the one trusted with much, much more will be expected.

Amplified Bible
but the one who did not know it and did things worthy of a beating, will receive only a few [lashes]. From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.

Legacy Standard Bible
but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a beating, will receive but a few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required, and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.

Berean Standard Bible
But the one who unknowingly does things worthy of punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and from him who has been entrusted with much, even more will be demanded.

Contemporary English Version
But servants who don't know what their master wants them to do will not be beaten so hard for doing wrong. If God has been generous with you, he will expect you to serve him well. But if he has been more than generous, he will expect you to serve him even better.

Complete Jewish Bible
however, the one who did what deserves a beating, but didn't know, will receive few lashes. From him who has been given much, much will be demanded — from someone to whom people entrust much, they ask still more.

Darby Translation
but he who knew [it] not, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few. And to every one to whom much has been given, much shall be required from him; and to whom [men] have committed much, they will ask from him the more.

Easy-to-Read Version
But what about the servant who does not know what his master wants? He also does things that deserve punishment. But he will get less punishment than the servant who knew what he should do. Whoever has been given much will be responsible for much. Much more will be expected from the one who has been given more."

Geneva Bible (1587)
But he that knewe it not, and yet did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with fewe stripes: for vnto whomsoeuer much is giuen, of him shalbe much required, and to whom men much commit, the more of him will they aske.

George Lamsa Translation
But he who does not know, and does what is worthy of punishment will receive less beating. For to whomever more is given, of him more will be required; and to whom much is entrusted, more will be required of his hand.

Good News Translation
But the servant who does not know what his master wants, and yet does something for which he deserves a whipping, will be punished with a light whipping. Much is required from the person to whom much is given; much more is required from the person to whom much more is given.

Lexham English Bible
But the one who did not know and did things deserving blows will be given a light beating. And from everyone to whom much has been given, much will be demanded, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will ask him for even more.

Literal Translation
But he not knowing, and doing things worthy of stripes, will be beaten with few. And everyone given much, much will be demanded from him. And to whom much was deposited, more exceedingly they will ask of him.

American Standard Version
but he that knew not, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. And to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required: and to whom they commit much, of him will they ask the more.

Bible in Basic English
But he who, without knowledge, did things for which punishment is given, will get only a small number of blows. The man to whom much is given, will have to give much; if much is given into his care, of him more will be requested.

Hebrew Names Version
but he who didn't know, and did things worthy of stripes, will be beaten with few stripes. To whoever much is given, of him will much be required; and to whom they deposit much, of him will they ask more.

International Standard Version
But the servantthe one">[fn] who did things that deserved a beating without knowing it will receive a light beating. Much will be required from everyone to whom much has been given. But even more will be demanded from the one to whom much has been entrusted."Leviticus 5:17; 1 Timothy 1:13;">[xr]

Murdock Translation
But he that knew not, yet did that which deserved stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For to whomsoever much is given, from him will much be required; and to whom much is committed, the more will be required at his hand.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
But he that knewe not, and did comit thynges worthy of strypes, shalbe beaten with fewe strypes. For vnto whosoeuer much is geuen, of him shalbe much required: and to whom men haue committed much, of hym wyl they aske the more.

English Revised Version
but he that knew not, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. And to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required: and to whom they commit much, of him will they ask the more.

World English Bible
but he who didn't know, and did things worthy of stripes, will be beaten with few stripes. To whoever much is given, of him will much be required; and to whom they deposit much, of him will they ask more.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
But he that knew not, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For to whomsoever much is given, of him much shall be required; and to whom they have committed much, of him they will ask the more.

Weymouth's New Testament
But he who had not been told it and yet did what deserved the scourge, will receive but few lashes. To whomsoever much has been given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been entrusted, of him a larger amount will be demanded.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
But he that knew not, and dide worthi thingis of strokis, schal be betun with fewe. For to eche man to whom myche is youun, myche schal be axid of hym; and thei schulen axe more of hym, to whom thei bitoken myche.

Update Bible Version
but he that did not know, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few [stripes]. And to whoever much is given, of him shall much be required: and to whom they commit much, of him they will ask the more.

Webster's Bible Translation
But he that knew not, and committed things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few [stripes]. For to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required: and to whom men have committed much, from him they will ask the more.

New English Translation
But the one who did not know his master's will and did things worthy of punishment will receive a light beating. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required, and from the one who has been entrusted with much, even more will be asked.

New King James Version
But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.

New Living Translation
But someone who does not know, and then does something wrong, will be punished only lightly. When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required.

New Life Bible
But the servant who did not know what his owner wanted done, but did things that would be reason to be beaten, will be beaten only a few times. The man who receives much will have to give much. If much is given to a man to take care of, men will expect to get more from him.

New Revised Standard
But the one who did not know and did what deserved a beating will receive a light beating. From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Whereas, he who had not come to know, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. And, every one to whom was given much, much, shall be sought from him; and, he to whom they committed much, for more than common, will they ask him.

Douay-Rheims Bible
But he that knew not and did things worthy of stripes shall be beaten with few stripes. And unto whomsoever much is given, of him much shall be required: and to whom they have committed much, of him they will demand the more.

Revised Standard Version
But he who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, shall receive a light beating. Every one to whom much is given, of him will much be required; and of him to whom men commit much they will demand the more.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
But he that knewe not and yet dyd committe thinges worthy of strypes shalbe beaten with feawe strypes. For vnto whom moche is geven of him shalbe moche requyred. And to whom men moche commyt the moare of him will they axe.

Young's Literal Translation
and he who, not having known, and having done things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few; and to every one to whom much was given, much shall be required from him; and to whom they did commit much, more abundantly they will ask of him.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But he that knewe it not, and yet dyd thinges worthy of strypes, shal be beaten with few strypes. For loke vnto whom moch is geuen, of him shal moch be sought: and loke to whom moch is commytted, of him shal moch be requyred.

Mace New Testament (1729)
whereas he that does not know it, and does things worthy of chastisement, shall receive fewer stripes. for to whom much is given, of him shall much be required, and the more a man has been trusted, the greater will be the demand.

Simplified Cowboy Version
Now if someone doesn't know what they are supposed to do, but makes a mistake anyway, they will just be talked to. Top notch work will be required from top hands. And when more is given, more will be expected."

Contextual Overview

⁴¹ Shemun Kipha said to him, Our Lord, to us speakest thou this parable, or to all men also ? ⁴² Jeshu said to him, Who then is that steward, faithful and wise, whom his lord hath established over his service, to give the portion in its time ? ⁴³ Blessed that servant whom, when his lord shall come, he shall find so doing. ⁴⁴ Assuredly I tell you, He will establish him over all his substance. ⁴⁵ But if that servant shall say in his heart, My lord withholdeth to come, and shall begin to beat the servants and the handmaids of his lord, and shall begin to eat and to drink and be drunken; ⁴⁶ the lord of that servant will come in a day when he thinketh not, and in an hour which he knoweth not; and shall sunder him, and set him his portion with those who are not faithful. ⁴⁷ And that servant who knew the will of his lord, and prepared not himself according to his will, shall be beaten with many ⁴⁸ But he who knew not, and did that which was worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For every one to whom much is given, much will be required from him; and to whom much is committed, the more will they require at his hand. ⁴⁹ FIRE have I come to send forth upon the earth, and I would that it already burned: ⁵⁰ and I have a baptism (wherewith) to be baptized, and greatly am I pressed till it be completed.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

knew: Leviticus 5:17, Acts 17:30, Romans 2:12-16, 1 Timothy 1:13

For: Luke 16:2, Luke 16:10-12, Genesis 39:8-23, Matthew 25:14-29, John 15:22, 1 Corinthians 9:17, 1 Corinthians 9:18, 1 Timothy 1:11, 1 Timothy 1:13, 1 Timothy 6:20, Titus 1:3, James 3:1,*Gr.

Reciprocal: Genesis 39:9 - none Exodus 22:10 - General Numbers 15:22 - General Deuteronomy 8:19 - I testify against Deuteronomy 25:2 - General Joshua 17:15 - If thou be Job 24:13 - rebel Proverbs 16:12 - an Ezekiel 16:51 - Samaria Hosea 4:15 - yet Amos 3:2 - therefore Matthew 11:22 - It shall Matthew 23:14 - therefore Matthew 25:15 - talents Mark 12:2 - a servant Mark 12:40 - long Luke 7:41 - the other Luke 10:14 - General Luke 19:15 - that he Luke 20:47 - the same Luke 23:34 - they know not John 13:17 - happy John 19:11 - the greater Acts 12:23 - because Romans 2:9 - of the Jew 2 Corinthians 8:12 - if 1 Timothy 5:8 - and is James 1:22 - be James 4:17 - General 1 Peter 4:17 - judgment Revelation 16:6 - for they are

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But he that knew not,.... His Lord's will; either not having the means of knowing it, as the Heathens; or through neglect of them, not attending to them, and making use of them, which is the case of many, where the Gospel revelation is:

and did commit things worthy of stripes; or punishment; as the Gentiles, by sinning against the law, and light of nature; and those who might have the advantage of a divine revelation, but neglect it: the Septuagint in Deuteronomy 25:2 have the same phrase as here,

αξιος πληγων, "worthy of stripes":

shall be beaten with few stripes; their punishment shall be less, and it shall be more tolerable for them in the day of judgment, than for knowing professors. The Jews did not always inflict forty stripes, or forty save one, upon delinquents; but according to their crimes, and as they were able to bear them, more or fewer: so it is said w,

"when they judge a sinner, how many (stripes) he can bear, they do not reckon, but by stripes that are fit to be trebled: if they judge he is able to bear "twenty", they do not order that he be beaten with twenty one, that so they may be trebled, but that he be beaten with "eighteen": if they condemn him to receive forty, and after he is begun to be beaten, they observe him to be weak, and they say he cannot bear any more than these "nine", or "twelve", with which he has been beaten, lo, he is free; if they condemn him to receive "twelve", and after that he is beaten, they see that he is strong and able to bear more, lo, he is free, and he is not to be beaten any more, upon that estimation: if they condemn him today that he is to be beaten with "twelve" (stripes), and they do not beat him till tomorrow, and lo, tomorrow he is able to bear eighteen, they do not beat him but with twelve.''

And elsewhere the rule is x,

"he that commits a sin, in which there are two negative (commands broken) if they pronounce but one sentence, he is beaten and is free; but if not (i.e. if more than one) he is beaten, and when he is healed, he is beaten again.''

For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall, much be required: the more knowledge a man has, the more practice is expected from him; and the greater his gifts are, the more useful he ought to be, and diligent in the improvement of them:

and to whom men have committed much, or to whom much is committed, of him they will ask the more; not more than what was committed to him, but more than from him, who has less committed to him; in proportion to what a man is entrusted with, the greater increase and improvement it is expected he should make.

w Maimon. Hilchot Sanhedrin, c. 17. sect. 2, 3. x Misn. Maccot, c. 3. sect. 11.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Few stripes - The Jews never inflicted more than forty stripes for one offence, Deuteronomy 25:3. For smaller offences they inflicted only four, five, six, etc., according to the nature of the crime. In allusion to this, our Lord says that he “that knew not” - that is, he who had comparatively little knowledge - would suffer a punishment proportionally light. He refers, doubtless, to those who have fewer opportunities, smaller gifts, or fewer teachers.

Much is given - They who have much committed to their disposal, as stewards, etc. See the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 48. Shall be beaten with few — For petty offences the Jews in many cases inflicted so few as four, five, and six stripes. See examples in Lightfoot.

From this and the preceding verse we find that it is a crime to be ignorant of God's will; because to every one God has given less or more of the means of instruction. Those who have had much light, or the opportunity of receiving much, and have not improved it to their own salvation, and the good of others, shall have punishment proportioned to the light they have abused. On the other hand, those who have had little light, and few means of improvement, shall have few stripes, shall be punished only for the abuse of the knowledge they possessed. See at the end of the chapter. Luke 12:59